All quiet on Tim Lincecum contract front, but Giants say talks with Matt Cain have been “healthy, ongoing”

The Giants have Ryan Vogelsong under contract, but the heaviest case in their arbitration file is yet to be resolved. They still must come to terms with Tim Lincecum.

The Giants and Lincecum’s representatives have not spoken in over a month. Rick Thurman, the agent for the two-time Cy Young award winner, told me today via text message that he is “just preparing his arbitration brief” and has had no dialogue with the club since the winter meetings in early December.

That’s not necessarily a bad sign. In fact, the Giants and Lincecum will make two very big statements one week from today.

That’s when the two sides will exchange arbitration figures. After that, the strategy and expectations will be clear to all parties and talks should ramp up.

Giants vice president Bobby Evans said he expects as much.

“With Lincecum, my expectations is there will always be discussions until there’s a deal,” Evans said. “There is never anything less than maximum effort on both sides to come to terms in as timely a fashion as reasonably possible. Whether it results in (an arbitration) hearing or not, you can’t always control. You do the best you can to find common ground, I remain optimistic we will.”

The Giants are known to prefer a four-year structure that would take Lincecum through arbitration and buy out his first two seasons of free agency. Lincecum’s camp has preferred a one- or two-year deal that would preserve his ability to hit the open market after the 2013 season, although they proposed an eight-year structure that the club had no interest in pursuing.

The Giants have been just as public in their desire to wrap up a long-term extension with Matt Cain, who is under contract for $15 million this season but will be a free agent at the end of the year. Unlike Lincecum, Cain isn’t tied to the arbitration schedule. So there was the assumption the Giants might wait until after they clear their arbitration docket (they have Angel Pagan, Melky Cabrera, Sergio Romo, NAte Schierholtz, Santiago Casilla and others to prepare for, too) before turning their attention to Cain.

But as Evans told me today, “Hey, I can multitask.”

Evans confirmed that the club has spoken with Cain’s representatives in recent days. He described the talks as “very healthy dialogue and it’s ongoing.”

“I’m an optimist by nature so you can pretty well gather we’ll do everything we can with all parties to come to agreeable terms,” Evans said. “They’ve been very responsive.”

In other news, Evans said the club was still awaiting word on Angel Villalona’s U.S. work visa.

Villalona, who hasn’t played organized baseball in two years while he was facing murder charges in the Dominican Republic, was placed on the 40-man roster in December after Major League Baseball reinstated him from the restricted list. All charges against Villalona have been dropped and he reportedly made payments to the victim of the September, 2009, shooting death after they abandoned their civil suit against him.

Evans confirmed that Villalona would be in major league camp this spring, along with all other players on the 40-man roster, if he receives his visa.

“They’re starting to trickle in but I don’t have the list yet,” Evans said. “You get notification of approval or denial and they come at the same time. We haven’t heard back yet, but I don’t anticipate any problem.”

Andrew Baggarly

Andrew Baggarly has documented the most eventful era in San Francisco Giants baseball history, having covered the team since 2004 for th​ree major media outlets including the San Jose Mercury News and the Oakland Tribune​. This is his 20th season as a baseball writer.
​Baggarly is the author of the bestselling book, A Band of Misfits: Tales of the 2010 San Francisco Giants, and the newly published Giant Splash: Bondsian Blasts, World Series Parades and Other Thrilling Moments By the Bay. Baggarly’s other notable life accomplishments include running as the Bratwurst in the Milwaukee Sausage Race and becoming a three-time Jeopardy! champion.

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Sign up Cain and Timmy and let’s get it going. Is it April yet? Why is time moving so SLOW?

ClutchUP

Baggs is on a roll.

This is TOO much to handle for one day….

After 1996 posts…

(which was a a bad year for the Giants 68-94, Finished 4th in NL West)

jerseygiant

Glad for Vogelsong. Be more glad when Cain is wrapped-up. That goes for Lincecum too! Glad to hear from you, Baggs!

green

The Giants haven’t talked to Lincecum’s agent in over a month? And Evans said “there will always be discussions until there’s a deal”. Well, they havent been talking so is Evans lying? I don’t see how the fact that they havent been talking, can be anything but a bad sign. Both sides know what the other is asking they hardly have to wait for the arb deadline.

stickman

Old intuition working again as per my #1931 posting on the 12-15 blog and CU’s mystical rejoinder that we would be hearing from Baggs in fairly short order. Good signs.

Delighted with the 2 year for Vogelsong, the Little Birdie that Could. Best #4 in the game. Just posted on the Flap this evening that i’d like to see the Giants and Timmy work out a three year deal (best for both parties, i think) and for SF to offer 5 years to Matt the Horse. 3@75 for Timmy and five for an even C. for Matt should do the trick nicely. They’re worth it.

Bagg’s info that Timmy would like three years is good news to me. Both sides retain some flexibility that way, while the Giants broaden their window of opportunity with the best staff in baseball, kickass defense and the prospect of a solid offense resulting in more parades.

al oha

ClutchUP says:
January 11th, 2012 at 6:45 pm
“After 1996 posts…
(which was a a bad year for the Giants 68-94, Finished 4th in NL West)”

There were actually 1966 posts and that year the Giants were 93-68 and finished 2nd in the NL West, 1 1/2 games behind the Dodgers.

The Giants traded Orlando Cepeda early that season, to the St. Louis Cardinals for Ray Sadecki who pitched 105 innings for the G’s and garnered a 3-7 record and a 5.40 ERA. Cepeda hit .303 for the Cards and was voted the NL Comeback Player of the Year.

Lousy trade, very unpopular with the Giants Fanbase.

fesnyc

lets face it, Larry Baer and the Giants ownership, you gotta sign Cain and Lincecum to longer term deals. they’re the heart of the franchise, and if you let either of them go you risk destroying the magic that fills ATT every game

Paul Heally

The Giants have made $115 Million Dollars over the last five years; they are one of five teams to make a Profit EVERY year in each of the last ten–it seems quite obvious they have targeted/budgeted about a $20MM profit each year-this club has a Rainy Day Fund EVERY year–that being said, how are folk thinking they are going to throw all this money at both Lincecum and Cain yet still meet these figure??? I can only chortle at how folk love to spend OTHER peep’s money!!!! 🙂

BigJanks

Clutch- Add one more post. 1997 wasn’t so bad

Foothills Ryan

Not out of the realm of possibility they turn Lincecum for prospects down the road.

al oha:
How could I have transposed 1966 into 96? What was I thinkin? Smokin? 🙂

Janks: Al oha found a hitch in my giddy up. Ouch Sadecki for ChaCha, What were THEY smoking? Herman Franks took CARE of the Say Hey Kid when his financial status hit the wall but I think Herman shared Alvin Darks opinion of OUR tremendous LATIN players….Dark apologized to all/many but in my opinion it was too little to late.

The new owners shouldn’t hide behind Larry Baer and the front office if they are “going on the cheap” with getting a bat or signing our pitching aces. Their feet should be held to the fire for settling for a fiscally-conservative, competitive Giants and not a championship Giants team.

Bring back the Bowtie.

old tiger

Always 2nd guessing, if it wasnt Cepeda,it would have been McCovey,at that point only one could play 1st base

Mavo

@old tiger – you miss the point … they should have gotten a LOT more for Cha Cha than Sadecki! And thanks to al oha for bringing up THAT painful memory again!! LOL When Cepeda led the Cardinals to the World Championship in 1967 I just about DIED from frustration!

totalfan62

Agree with Clutch and Mavo re Giants (circa early ’60s) poor handling of our Latin players. We had this extremely strong pipeline into the Caribbean–the envy of many other teams at that time–but management was clueless in regards to making them comfortable and providing an environment in which they could thrive.

In Willie Mays’ biography he commented on how Dark and others tried to force the Latin players to speak English in the clubhouse and on the field.

Cepeda was an enigma, no doubt. Lived la vida loca, but was an enormous talent. His knee injury and his attitude issues led to the trade in which we received far too little in return.

Great example of this Latin disconnect: Matty Alou never got the chance to play or the instruction he needed. In 1965 he hit .231 in 324 ABs. Traded to Pittsburgh (for Ozzie Virgil and Joe Gibbon), given one-to-one instruction by Harry Walker, in 1966 he led the NL in batting average, hitting .342 and playing stellar CF.

totalfan62

I am extremely happy for Ryan Vogelsong, and glad he’s locked up for two years (plus). I for one have no concern over “one year wonder” issues (a la Torres). Rags taught Vogelsong how to use his talent and refine his game, and he will be a stellar #3-4 starter for the next 3-4 years.

Also happy for Ryan’s family. Sure wish folks would back off the “hot wife” thing and realize she’s a strong woman of faith who loves and supports her husband. That’s a really good thing.

Sure hope the Cain updates are accurate. Locking up Cainer for four more years (’13 thru ’16) gives us the 21st century version of Koufax/Drysdale (apologies for bringing Dodgers into this post, but it’s a valid comparison). Four years, $80MM, backloaded to clear Zito mess, good for all and allows us to focus on Lincecum.

al oha

Congrats Ryan and Nicole Vogelsong! I’m truly happy for you and your family. You really deserve it. Great to see good things happen to good people. And so glad he came back to do it with the Giants. It’s a great story.

Nicole is extremely attractive. And it is her support and commitment that enhances her beauty. It is exemplary and such a great thing for all people to see and learn from. Ryan and his family make it so easy to root for him.

Keep on keeping ON. Looking forward to watching his continued success.

No Longer Long Suffering Giants Fan

Total Fan 62, let me add to your Matty Alou comment. It wasn’t just the one on one work he did with Harry Walker that made Alou a batting champ, it was a complete change in style.

Even though he was 5’9″ 160 lbs soaking wet, the Giants, in their infinite wisdom, wanted Alou to pull the ball and hit with more power, since he was left handed and the wind blew out to RF in Candlestick. Harry Walker utilized what Alou did best, run and make contact. He became a slap hitter and hit anywhere from .331 to .342 over the next four seasons. He was just one in a long line of Latin players the Giants scouted, signed, developed and gave away for a bag of magic beans, or maybe another fifth of scotch for Horace Stoneham.

totalfan62

@ NLLSGF: Yep, that’s exactly what happened with Matty. I also remember many drag bunt singles, perfectly placed, and thinking “why doesn’t he do that more often?”

I think some of that “power hitting” mentality was Matty’s ego as well, but you’re right–the Giants certainly encouraged it. Another fifth of scotch for Horace…good one.

I remember the Giants playing at Pittsburgh one Sunday afternoon in 1966, and Russ Hodges–with frustration and exasperation in his voice–saying “that’s three hits for Matty Alou today. All three line drives, one to each field, clean as a hound’s tooth”.

Boom

Pay Him. Pay that man his money.

ClutchUp

@Total and Long Suffering:
Yep Mateo Alou was hitting at the Stick opposite of his body construction for sure. Harry the Hat “used to” … make his Suit by the Cut of its Cloth.

Saying Matty was a slap hitter is as you both know a misnomer. It was what we all thought we saw visually with our eyes in real time. In actuality Matty was a technician, a forerunner to the phrase = hit the ball where it’s pitched.

MUCH MUCH easier to say than do.

ClutchUp

totalfan62 says: January 12th, 2012 at 4:47 am – Cepeda was an enigma, no doubt. Lived la vida loca, but was an enormous talent. His knee injury and his attitude issues led to the trade in which we received far too little in return.

***Pretty good choice of word for Orlando (enigma). However I can’t get over Cha-Cha’s apparent discontent regarding some of Alvin Dark’s clubhouse rules. If and when Mike Murphy ever authors a book – I hope he covers the truth versus my speculation. The then Giants Golden Glove 3rdbaseman use to tell our family that ALL those early SF Latin players where GREAT teammates. It was ALL about “comfort zone” and Giant Skipper Dark = never got it = until very late in his coaching career, IF at all.

Heck, some of the guys (Davenport-Bolin-O’Dell) from Alabama and other Southern States could hardly be understood either 😉

Freakette87

Might as well sign up Timmy long term, he should be a Giant for life <3

GiantsexpatinBoston

Humor me guys (and gals?) as some of the technical stuff is above me. Cain is definitely a giant for at least one more year and timmy for at least two. Correct? Is there any way we loose either for next season? When evans talks about possibly heading to arbitration with lincecum, what will they be deciding there exactly. I would be grateful for some help with this. Thanks.

orangeandblack

Timmeh will be turning 28 in June. I can see where the Gmen would like to skim the cream of his career by signing him until he hits 32, but can’t they compromise and give him at least a 5-year? Signing pitchers longterm always ends up in a 20-20 hindsight situation, but for what this kid’s done for the Giants I can live with a Zito situation (hell we are now and we never got anything close to his Cy Young form).

As for Matt, agree that the Giants have to focus on pulling the pin on him now. We’ll be lucky to keep either of these guys for anything near $100 mill. Amazing.

bradley emden

the real money they make and the reported income are not the same. they make much more as a team than what is generally reported.

Norman

Gotta be careful of long, long term contracts with pitchers as they get hurt. A few years ago the top 20 paid (avg salary about $15M) pitchers did have a 3.70 ERA but they only went 10-7. They can pitch but staying healthy, not so easy. We forget that Sabean did not re-sign Jason Schmidt but LA did to, I think, a 5 year $80M contract. Schmidt went 3-6 with them. Zito was Magowan’s deal not Sabean’s.

dgg

Agree with #6 fesnyc, #21 Boom, and #24 Freakette87. Tim and Matt are the core of the Giants. Sign them both to long-term contracts and pay up!

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